The Enigma of the 2019 Parliamentary Elections in Telangana

The first Lok Sabha election results after the formal creation of Telangana and its wider implications for both state and national politics are assessed. Coming as it did, within a few months of the state assembly polls, the electorate in the state made a clear distinction between the earlier state election verdict and the present verdict in the national election. What factors contributed to this change and what are the implications for the politics in the state?

Electoral politics springs many surprises that are sometimes unimaginable. The 2019 parliamentary elections in Telangana are an illustration in this regard. The ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) won a resounding victory in the legislative assembly elections in December 2018. Within a few months, in the parliamentary elections of 2019, the ruling party had to be satisfied with winning just about half the seats.